Janet Jackson - The Pleasure Principle

What this video is

Released on May 12, 1987, as the sixth single from Janet Jackson's landmark album Control (1986), 'The Pleasure Principle' arrived at a pivotal moment in the construction of Jackson's image as an autonomous, physically commanding pop artist. Written and produced by Monte Moir, the track is an independent-woman anthem built on synth-funk architecture. The music video — a single-location, solo dance performance shot…

Why it matters

A canonical text of 1980s R&B/dance-pop music video. The video's choreography-forward, single-performer, minimal-staging approach established a template that has been directly cited and re-enacted across decades. Its 1988 MTV VMA win for Best Choreography confirmed its industry significance. It…

The director

Dominic Sena (born April 26, 1949, Niles, Ohio) is an American director and cinematographer. He co-founded Propaganda Films in the mid-1980s and built his early career directing over 100 music videos, earning the Eastman Kodak Certificate of Visual…